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Why Do Investors Hate This Top-Traded Natural Gas Stock?
Natural gas exploration and production company Quicksilver Resources is a day trader's dream. With millions of shares being traded daily, and more than 20 million shares trading hands last Friday, Quicksilver is a company the market likes to move. Not only are traders buying and selling shares of Quicksilver in rapid-fire action but many of those traders have made bearish bets on the company as evidenced by the 16.8% of its outstanding shares being sold short.
Those taking bearish bets have to be getting nervous considering that shares are up nearly 40% in the past week. That being said, bearish themes abound and are the force driving shares down 80% over the past two years, taking the company's market cap below $500 million. With all the heavy trading surrounding this stock let's take a look at why its both hated and loved by traders.
Why it's hated
If there are two things investors hate these days its energy companies that produce a lot of natural gas and have a debt-laden balance sheet. That's a big problem for Quicksilver as 72% of its production is natural gas and the company's balance sheet is weighted down by$2.1 billion of debt. Liquidity concerns are a bigger problem for Quicksilver and are a big reason why shares hit a low of $1.67 just on March 6.
The combination of a high debt burden and a focus on natural gas production has been the downfall of another hated natural gas stock: Chesapeake Energy . The company seems to have provided the blueprint followed by so many in the industry, including Quicksilver. While there are a lot of similarities between the two, Chesapeake seems to be a bit further along in its plan to grow its liquids production. The company is spending 85% of its 2013 capital budget to grow liquids production to 26% of total production, while Quicksilver will still be at just 18% liquids production in 2013. Still, there is a silver lining here that investors need to keep an eye on.
Why it should be loved
Quicksilver is well aware of its liquidity issues. CEO Glenn Darden has said that his company's "... top priorities are to improve liquidity through asset sales, joint ventures and other measures, further reduce the overall company cost structure, and match capital spending to operational cash flow." To accomplish this, the company plans to only spend about $120 million in capital for 2013, which is a substantial cut from the $270 million it spent in 2012. The key here is that the company has resolved to limit its spending to its expected cash flow. It's also promised to reduce spending further if it needs to preserve liquidity.
One way the company will accomplish this is by concluding its advanced negotiations to monetize its Barnett Shale assets with a deal. The company is considering either an asset sale or an MLP for the assets and is hoping to unlock the value of those assets. Quicksilver is also looking for a joint venture partner of its Horn River Basin assets.
Outside of unlocking some value by shedding assets, Quicksilver is looking to grow its oil and liquids production. The most promising of its developing oil plays is its Niobrara acreage. The company just closed an acquisition and exploration agreement with Shell that covered 320,000 acres. The company got a small cash infusion and a world-class partner in the deal. It's also looking for another third-party joint venture partner to help further fund its development. If Quicksilver can strike oil in the Niobrara it'll really boost its liquids production and set investor's minds at ease.
My Foolish take
Given that the debt to capital ratio is four-to-one, I'd be leery of going long as the company doesn't have a lot of financial flexibility. However, there are enough potential positives to quickly burn any short position. Long-term investors are better just staying away from this one and watching from the sidelines. If it can execute on its leveraging strategy, there will be plenty of upside later with much less risk.
Because the market hates heavy natural gas producers these days, energy investors would be hard-pressed to find another company trading at a deeper discount than Chesapeake Energy. Its share price depreciated after negative news surfaced concerning the company's management and spiraling debt picture. While the debt issues still persist, giant steps have been taken to help mitigate the problems. To learn more about Chesapeake and its enormous potential, you're invited to check out The Motley Fool's brand-new premium report on the company. Simply click here now to access your copy.
The article Why Do Investors Hate This Top-Traded Natural Gas Stock? originally appeared on Fool.com.
Fool contributor Matt DiLallo has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has the following options: Long Jan 2014 $20 Calls on Chesapeake Energy, Long Jan 2014 $30 Calls on Chesapeake Energy, and Short Jan 2014 $15 Puts on Chesapeake Energy. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Copyright © 1995 - 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.


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Last week the Secretary of the Navy dismissed the top officials at my school – one of the sadder events in its century-plus history.
How did this happen?
And more broadly, just what goes on at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif.? These are the questions I have heard most often in the past several days, so I'll try to answer them.
The simple response to "What happened?" is that Navy Secretary Ray Mabus lost confidence in President Dan Oliver and Provost Leonard Ferrari because of their apparent inability to remain in compliance with the regulations, financial and otherwise, that govern us. The long Inspector General reports that have been publicly posted also provide hints at concern over the school's seeming strategic "drift" away from its core mission that calls for a primary focus on educating naval officers.
On this point, I can only say that the problems complying with regulations that I am aware of grew out of deep dedication to pursuit of the core mission of education – extending to all our services and to our many allies around the world who send their best officers to us. Both our president and provost put mission first; it appears that sometimes they colored outside the lines in their efforts to do so.
It is important also to correct the misimpression created by the official finding that these officials accepted inappropriate "gifts." This sounds like people were on the take. Hardly. President Oliver and Provost Ferrari, with both of whom I have worked closely since each came to the Naval Postgraduate School, are men of unquestioned integrity.
For all their probity, though, I am the first to admit having had strong disagreements with the provost (often) and with the president (occasionally) on matters of the school's management and strategic direction. Both were always open to hearing other points of view, even if their decisions sometimes left me shaking my head.
It is this point about openness to divergent views that is, I think, the most attractive feature of the Naval Postgraduate School – and begins to answer the question about what goes on here.
This is a place to which many of our students come with extensive combat experience. Given the mixed results of the past decade of war, they often have key insights about how to fight smarter and how to operate more efficiently. They come together with faculty from across a range of disciplines, but who all share a deep interest in military and security affairs. At even the finest universities, there will only be a handful of faculty who specialize in conflict-related studies. Here just about everybody does.
And what a faculty it is. Guillermo Owen in our math department has twice been nominated for the Nobel Prize in economics. Dorothy Denning in my department is one of the world's leading computer scientists, and was recently inducted into the Cyber Security Hall of Fame. Douglas Porch is one the most eminent military historians of our time. The list goes on and on.
Our students are just as amazing. Admiral William McRaven, head of the Special Operations Command and the man who got bin Laden, is an alumnus of our special operations program. Almost three dozen astronauts did their studies here. Two of them died on missions. Our international alumni include many who are now general officers playing leading roles in their countries' fights against terrorist organizations.
All in all, what goes on at the Naval Postgraduate School is quite scintillating. I am in my 20th year teaching here, and over the course of my career have turned down several offers to go elsewhere. Partly because of gratitude for the opportunity to serve in this way at such a challenging time, and partly, God forgive me, because the terrible problems we study are so complex and interesting.
Yes, I can see why Secretary Mabus lost confidence in our president and provost. The mission was being pursued with insufficient attention given to compliance, and with some drift in strategic direction. But I hope he has confidence in our ability to keep contributing to the nation's, and our world's, security – and to do so while following the rules and keeping our focus on the core mission of military education.
John Arquilla is professor and chair in the defense analysis department at the Naval Postgraduate School. The views expressed are his alone.

subset: commoncrawl


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My friend, Anna, sent me a copy of the Ford at Fox box set on the condition that we run a John Ford Blogathon. Anna blogs over at Bemused and Nonplussed.
I don't have a snappy title--"Print the Legend" was taken by a blogathon a couple of years ago and I don't want to nick that. So "The John Ford Blogathon" it is. If you want to participate, please leave your name and your blog in the comments and tell me what you want to write about. You can write about more than one thing. This is going to be a week-long affair. It will run July 7-July 13.
For myself, I'm planning on writing about How Green Was My Valley and probably some of Ford's work from the 1930s (since I have that shiny new box set), but all periods of his work are fair game. Entirely up to you. Duplicates are allowed, but if you want to shy away from repeating anyone, here's what folks want to write about:
The participants thus far:
Krell Laboratories (right here, as it so happens)--How Green Was My Valley and probably some other stuff.
Bemused and Nonplussed--the Ford at Fox box
Movies, Silently--Bucking Broadway
The Joy and Agony of Movies--They Were Expendable
Critica Retro--The Iron Horse
Thrilling Days of Yesteryear--Prisoner of Shark Island
Caftan Woman--The Informer
Vintage Cameo--My Darling Clementine
Outspoken and Freckled--The Quiet Man
21 Essays--Wagon Master
Directed by John Ford (tentative)--TBA
We Have the Stars--Wee Willie Winkie
Silver Screenings--The Sun Shines Bright
Phantom Empires--The Blue Eagle
Public Transportation Snob--She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
The Grim Reader--The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
Girls Do Film--The Grapes of Wrath
The Girl with the White Parasol--Young Mister Lincoln and/or The Whole Town's Talking
Microbrewed Reviews--The Searchers (and tentatively, Donovan's Reef)
The Round Place in the Middle--Drums Along the Mohawk
Mayerson on Animation--Submarine Patrol
Movie Fanfare--Up the River
The Great Katharine Hepburn--Mary Queen of Scots and Ford and Kate
Once Upon a Screen--Rio Grande (and maybe The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance)
Mildred's Fatburgers--The Lost Patrol
The Hitless Wonder Movie Blog--The Horse Soldiers
Dammaged Goods--Donovan's Reef
Christy's Inkwell--Maureen O'Hara and John Ford
The Stop Button--The Whole Town's Talking
She Blogged by Night--Fort Apache
Ferdy on Films/This Island Rod--TBD
Curtsies and Hand Grenades--Young Mister Lincoln and/or The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
All Things Kevyn--10 Favorite Lesser-known John Ford Films
The Suesue Applegate Blog--The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence
The Cinema Packrat--TBD
David Meuel--Women in John Ford
Barry Bradford--Young Mr. Lincoln
Cary Grant Won't Eat You--Mister Roberts
Portraits by Jenni--Sergeant Rutledge
Tom Price--The Last Hurrah and/or The Horse Soldiers
Anyway, here are some banners.
I'm trying out Patreon as a means of funding my blogs. They don't have a widget yet, so this link will just have to do. If you like my writing and art and if you'd like to support Krell Laboratories and Christianne's Art and Comics, please come on over and pledge. Thanks.


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Porsche are delighted to announce the expansion of the E-Hybrid range with the new Cayenne E-Hybrid, combining the best driving dynamics in its class with maximum efficiency.
The 3.0 litre turbocharged V6 engine produces 250kW (340hp), gradually delivering power and torque as it picks up speed. The maximum torque of the 100kW (136hp) electric motor is immediately available, resulting in an enormous total system torque of 700Nm. The boost strategy matches that of the 918 Spyder supercar - pure sports car performance. The Cayenne E-Hybrid accelerates from 0 to 62mph in a mere 5.0 seconds*, with a top speed of 157mph.
Its all-electric range of 14 miles to 27 miles theoretically allows you to complete an entire working day in the city without using the combustion engine – with a top speed of up to 83mph. Battery capacity has improved significantly in the Cayenne E-Hybrid, along with the distance on electricity and the boost reserves: in comparison to the previous model, capacity increased from 10.8 to 14.1 kWh, an increase of around 30 per cent. The fluid-cooled battery, stored beneath the loading floor in the rear of the car, consists of eight cell modules with 13 prismatic lithium ion cells each. Within 7.8 hours, the high-voltage battery is charged fully via a 230 volt connection with ten amps. If the optional 7.2 kilowatt on-board charger and a 230 volt connection with 32 amps are used as an alternative to the standard 3.6 kilowatt charger, the battery is 'filled up' again after only 2.3 hours.
Explore the Cayenne E-Hybrid here and discover what Porsche E-Performance means by contacting our Centre. For your everyday life. For your driving experience. For our collective desire to look ahead.
Fuel consumption combined 3.4 – 3.2 l/100 km; CO2 emissions 78 – 72 g/km; energy consumption: 20.9 – 20.6 kWh/100 km.
*Where it is safe and legal to do so.
© 2024 All rights reserved to Porsche Centre Glasgow and its licensors.
*Data determined in accordance with the Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Procedure (WLTP) as required by law. You can find more information on WLTP at www.porsche.com/wltp . For Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) range and Equivalent All Electric Range (EAER) figures are determined with the battery fully charged, using a combination of both battery power and fuel.
Values are provided for comparison only. To the extent that fuel and energy consumption or CO₂ values are given as ranges, these do not relate to a single, individual car and do not constitute part of the offer. Optional features and accessories can change relevant vehicle parameters such as weight, rolling resistance and aerodynamics which may result in a change in fuel or energy consumption and CO₂ values. Vehicle loading, topography, weather and traffic conditions, as well as individual driving styles, can all affect the actual fuel consumption, energy consumption, electrical range, and CO₂ emissions of a car.
** Important information about the all-electric Porsche models can be found


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Snoop Dog
Born Snoop Sizzle Fo' Drizzle Broadus Doggman, Snoop Dog iz da urban pimpster half brudda o' Snoopy. Snoopy'smudda wuz uh beeotch (in both terms o' da word) an' so slept around wiff many other dogs. Snoop'sfather iz Brian, who later played uh dog in Family Guy, who iz actually black, though albino. This confused identity led Brian ta lash out against blacks, including Snoop, his own son. In fact, at da age o' 5, Snoop wuz already persecuted by Casper The Friendly Ghost, uh member o' da Klu Klux Klan. His brudda Snoopy also tended ta scorn Snoop fo' his race, instead befriending small Asian birds, relationships dat soon brought him Avian Bird Flu. As Brian wuz an alcoholic, Snoop wuz often beaten wiff nearby puns an' poorly crafted humor, which caused him internal bleeding. At da age o' 15, Snoop ventured out on his own on Suburbia'sstreets an' became uh pimp. ya'll is mad stupid.
Pimping career[edit]
Snoop dog and Shane Patteerson had a surprising number of pedophiles willing to buy his whores, and so he grew quite affluent. He also tried selling vacumn cleaners but this gig was not nearly as sucessful.
Rapping career[edit]
Soon after he gained a reasonable amount of money from exploiting women, Snoop decided to further his career by becoming a rapper, and rapping about his life of being a pimp and a gangster. Notably, this makes him the only rapper to have actually sung about these things, who actually did them. The rest are just extremely sunburnt white men from Australia. After seeing his half-brother's sucessful career, Snoopy and his wife Snoop Dogg decided to immitate it, hoping to confuse the public and bring Snoop down. Their efforts worked, as Snoop soon was forced to declare bankruptcy and retire. OOOH! and we were forgetting the most important fact; there is not a day that he doesnt make ME horny!
Pirate Ninja career[edit]
He become a pirate, which Kakashi did. As soon as he used his retirement funds to purchase a pirate ship and crew, Snoop began to play loud rock music about lesbians, which gave Kakashi a heart attack, killing him. Snoop began to sail towards Cuba, to get him some smokes, but his ship was soon shot down by The Red Baron, his brother in disguise as a pilot.
Pretty obviously, the explosion of the ship killed Snoop. He died in peace... if dying in peace means asploding into tiny smithereens which were soon eaten by bloodthirsty mermaids.
Some people believe Snoop was in fact not killed by the asplosion, and in fact escaped and was killed in 2001 by one of his bitches had fat asses and Shane Patterson posessed by the spirit of love and fucking his mom. Shanes Mom was a hooker for 80 years for some money to keep her retarded son the doctors could agree for these charges.
Snoop is also well known for the ritualistic ceremony of smoking cannabis, or as black people call it: "Getting down wit da Buddha." In a scientific study done by the University of Arkansas, on May 29nd, 2021, Snoop Lion Mane Dogg Gucci was found to be addicted to weed. It is said that Snoop smokes upward of 34 pounds of maryjoanna per day. That's like 50,304 blunts man! Snoop also has a tendency to lose train of thought halfway through his senten so how about those Pats?


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The first time I saw Trixie Whitley play live, she apologized for having a cold. It was at last year's tour with Daniel Lanois' Black Dub at the Fillmore, and man, she could have had the flu and still sounded amazing.
Last night's intimate showcase at Brick and Mortar in San Francisco just cemented how talented this petite firebrand is. Her solo performances introducing songs off her upcoming album, Fourth Corner, were full of her signature soul and angst.
Although you could tell she was annoyed by the casual and noisy crowd, once she dug into a song, she was all in. Avid fans crowded the stage to soak up her electrifying presence. This woman is equally comfortable on keys, guitar, and I've seen her sit behind a kit, too.
Does Whitley's name seem familiar? Yes, she is the daughter of blues/rock singer songwriter Chris Whitley, and she's been learning, performing and touring since she was a girl. At 17, Trixie started to perform her own music in clubs throughout New York City. She recorded her first EP, Strong Blood, in the spring of 2008, produced with Me'shell Ndegeocello and Dougie Bowne.
In late 2008, legendary producer Daniel Lanois (U2, Bob Dylan, Brian Eno, Peter Gabriel, Neil Young) contacted Trixie and invited her to the Berklee School of Music, where he was in residence. Their stunning collaboration of Trixie's song "I'd Rather Go Blind" — with drummer Brian Blade (Joni Mitchell, Wayne Shorter, Joshua Redman) — was filmed and started to create an immediate buzz in music circles. Soon, with the addition of bassist Daryl Johnson (Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Neville Brothers), a super group, Daniel Lanois' Black Dub, was born.
Set to release on January 29, 2013, Fourth Corner and its first single, "Breathe You in My Dreams," showcase Whitley's undeniable talent as a solo artist. Fourth Corner was recorded in New York with producer/keyboardist Thomas Bartlett (aka Doveman, who's also worked with Glen Hansard, Antony and the Johnsons, Grizzly Bear and the National), engineer Pat Dillett (David Byrne, St. Vincent, Mary J. Blige), with string arrangements by Rob Moose (Antony, Bon Iver).
With a sparse rig consisting of a small Fender combo, a vintage Gibson and a small-body Martin acoustic, plus an old Wurli electric piano, Whitley's minimalistic accompaniments showcased her larger-than-life voice. Her evident comfort behind her instrument and her control over her soulful, sometimes sweet, sometimes gritty vocal captivated the crowd. Sadly, she didn't seem happy with the result. But I was!
Find out more about this amazing talent at trixiewhitley.com.
Here's the video for Whitley's first single, "Breathe You in My Dreams":
Laura B. Whitmore is a singer/songwriter based in the San Francisco bay area. A veteran music industry marketer, she has spent over two decades doing marketing, PR and artist relations for several guitar-related brands including Marshall and VOX. Her company, Mad Sun Marketing, represents 65amps, Dean Markley, Agile Partners, Guitar World and many more. Laura was instrumental in the launch of the Guitar World Lick of the Day app. She is the co-producer of the Women's Music Summit and the lead singer for the rock band, Summer Music Project. More at mad-sun.com.


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The lovely people from Forever Friends have kindly sent Logan and I some of their Forever Friends Naturals products to test and review. We couldn't wait to try them out so here is what we thought.
I'll let Forever Friends tell you a bit about their products: "Here at Grace Cole we're passionate about our products and constantly strive to improve them. Because the skin is the largest and most delicate organ on your baby's body, we wanted to create a range of bath time goodies to help keep it nourished and healthy. Our baby range is as gentle as possible, meaning you can both relax and enjoy bath time, safe in the knowledge that your little bear's skin will be protected from artificial nasties. We also want to protect Mother Nature too – all of our bottles and jars are recyclable and we will continue to do our bit to reduce our effect on the environment. Today's society has never been so interested in protecting our precious planet and we believe everyone should take responsibility for it. We owe it to our little bears to provide a clean, safe world to grow up in."
We were sent the Sleepy Head body wash, Splish Splash bath bubbles and Softly Softly body butter. All products smell amazing. The Sleepy Head body wash has extracts of camomile and calendula so perfect to have as part of a soothing bedtime routine. We use it at every bathtime now as it just smells so lush and helps to keep Logan's skin soft. I was a bit wary to start with as Logan has sensitive skin but this body wash has been really good, not a dry bit of skin in sight. You get 250ml in a bottle for RRP £4.00 which is pretty reasonable for such a lovely product.
The Splish Splash bath bubbles are just as great, smell superb and you only need a little drop for lots of lovely bubbles. It too also has extracts of camomile and calendula for a lovely relaxing bath for your little one. This combined with the body wash makes an excellent combination to use for your babies bath before they go to bed. The scents seem to relax Logan and help keep him relaxed. You get 250ml in a bottle for RRP £4.00.
The Softly Softly body butter has to be my favourite though. It keeps Logan's skin so soft and smooth plus it absorbes into the skin brilliantly leaving no stickiness or extra cream. And... you guessed it, he smells amazing afterwards! I've even had a sneaky wee try myself and my skin loves it. The body butter has shea butter and aloe vera extract in it so all good for the skin. Plus using body butter on your little one will help them to relax if you give them a little baby massage whilst rubbing on the cream. Forever Friends have even created a little handy tips page on how to give your baby a massage in the comfort of your own home. You get 150ml of body butter for RRP £6.00.
You'll be pleased to know that all products are not tested on animals and are free from the usual nasty Parabens, SLES, artificial colours etc. The packaging can also be recycled which is great to know and the products are made in the UK.
Forever Friends Naturals range also includes the lovely Rub-A-Dub shampoo and Nighty Night cuddle lotion. You can purchase these great products from Forever Friends Naturals very own online shop.
Overall these are really superb products. They are so soft and gentle on babies skin and I know I keep saying this but they really do smell awesome! Fair pricing too as you don't need a lot of the product for the desired effect.
Mummies rating - 10/10
Logan's rating - 10/10
Please visit www.foreverfriendsbaby.co.uk for more products and information. You can also see what Forever Friends get up to on facebook and twitter so why not pop over and say hello! Remember to tell them The Breastest News sent you.
24 September 2011
Review: Forever Friends Naturals
Posted by
The Breastest News at Saturday, September 24, 2011
Labels: baby bath products, forever friends, forever friends naturals, gentle on babies skin, natural
Labels: baby bath products, forever friends, forever friends naturals, gentle on babies skin, natural
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Chinese exporters seek to shed taint
| Xi Jin Reservoir, China
Normally, the catfish thrashing the water as they gulp down their feed at Sun Zhongren's fish farm in this idyllic corner of southern China would have ended up on American dinner tables.
From the net cages in this reservoir, they would have been taken to be skinned, gutted, and filleted on a production line at the Baiyang fish-packing plant in nearby Nanning. But that line, installed earlier this year, has been idled by the latest health scare surrounding Chinese exports.
The US Food and Drug Administration last week effectively banned Chinese catfish imports, citing contamination with carcinogenic medicine and unacceptable antibiotic residues.
The US ban on several varieties of fish comes after a number of export safety scandals involving products such as fruit juices, toothpaste, toy trains, and tires, which have tattered the reputation of China's inspection regime.
Now, Baiyang and other top catfish producers are striking out on a novel route that could offer a solution for other export products: They are asking a Swiss inspection and certification company to vouch for the safety of their food.
"We have realized that the US market does not trust Chinese government examinations, so we prefer third-party certification," says Kevin Wang, head of the Chinese Catfish Association, a producer group. "That way we can guarantee quality. Without it, we cannot."
Mr. Wang is in discussions with SGS, a well-known global company based in Geneva, which provides testing and certification services that help traders evaluate potential suppliers.
Baiyang, the largest fish-packing plant in the Guangxi autonomous province bordering Vietnam, has also jumped the gun. The firm approached the local SGS office last May, and is negotiating a deal for SGS inspectors to monitor its operations, according to Wang Ning, Baiyang's general manager.
The company has had no problem with US inspections since it began exporting tilapia to America last year, says Ms. Wang, and sells its fish to Wal-mart, Ocean Park, and other leading retailers.
But "the majority of our American clients hoped for a third-party guarantee of the quality of our products," she says. "Our customers were asking for proof from a foreign agent."
Since Baiyang does 70 percent of its $20 million a year business with the US, those requests counted. "That is a 6 million RMB ($800,000) investment," says Ms. Wang, pointing forlornly to a German-made catfish processing machine standing silent at the head of a long stainless steel table where nobody is working. "Now it is idle. I have laid off 200 workers."
Though the FDA ruling allows shipments of catfish whose importers can prove they contain no drug residues, "the waiting time on the dock in America before inspection is already 40 days and it will now be two months," complains Ms. Wang. "We have to pay for cold storage all that time. It is too costly for us."
The new restrictions on US imports of farm-raised catfish, along with shrimp, eels, basa, and dace (related to carp) are only the latest chapter in a string of scandals that have rocked China's international reputation and drawn attention to the scale of its food sales to the United States.
The FDA said repeated testing of Chinese farm-raised seafood had found "continuing evidence that certain Chinese aquaculture products imported into the United States contain illegal substances" such as carcinogenic antimicrobial agents and residues of antibiotics not approved for use in US seafood.
Fish farmers here acknowledge that some of their peers do indeed use banned drugs to keep their schools healthy in often overcrowded cages, but Ms. Wang insists that "even if some small companies break the rules you have to look at the industry mainstream," which she says abides by US and Chinese regulations.
Her own company, she says, sells farmers fish fry that Baiyang has hatched, provides them with fish feed that it produces, and offers monthly training and technical support to its suppliers to ensure no corners are cut.
"There is a small problem but that does not represent the whole industry," argues Mr. Wang of the Catfish Association. "It is not fair [of the FDA] to affect the whole industry; I'd say 70 to 80 percent of the companies are good ones."
To distinguish those from the outlaws, Wang says, his association plans to select 10 Chinese farm-raised fish exporting companies that have never had any shipments rejected by the FDA, representing about 80 percent of catfish exports. Subjected to monitoring by SGS, they will be approved to market their catfish under the "China Cage Raised Reservoir Catfish" brand name.
Wang says he plans to lead a delegation of catfish producers to the US next month to explain the scheme to the US authorities.
This branding exercise "makes complete sense," says Dan Harris, an attorney with Harris & Moure who advises small and medium companies doing business with Chinese firms. "It is very smart. They are recognizing the reality."
It is not clear how long the scheme will take to finalize, however, and in the meantime, Mr. Sun, the fish-farm owner, says he is "very angry with those individual farmers whose actions have impacted our exports. This is going to cost me about 300,000 RMB ($40,000) a season."
Sun's farm manager, Qian Ren, says he does not understand the problem. "We have never used drugs on this farm," he insists. "I feed these fish and raise them. I know they are safe to eat and I eat them."
That is unlikely to convince FDA inspectors, however. For the time being, Baiyang's catfish line will sit unused. "I could be shipping 200 containers a year," sighs Ms. Wang. "Now we will just have to wait and see what happens."


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Up in smoke: Why I sold my marijuana stocks
In my opinion, the market as a whole is somewhat overvalued at this point and we may be due for a correction sometime within the next few months.
When this might occur is extremely difficult to foretell. I couldn't help noticing that the term biotech bubble is starting to come up far more frequently in the business press and Google Trends recently.
Valuations are obviously extremely high in the biotech sector. In my opinion, they deserve to be pretty high since innovation in this field is occurring at a breakneck pace and practical new applications are showing up all over.
The problem is that, at least in the short term, stock prices reflect the market's perception of what is going on. Since I jump in and out of stocks fairly rapidly, I have to take this into consideration in order to potentially maximize the portfolio's return.
I was a little wary of my two biotech ETFs, iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology Index (IBB) and ProShares Ultra Nasdaq Biotechnology (BIB)–and have sold both positions. They mirror the biotech sector in general.
They're obviously weighted heavier towards larger companies.
I can easily see them taking a hit if the market becomes a little disenchanted towards the sector as a whole. That's basically what happened to 3D printing stocks not long ago. That's why I got out of 3D Systems Corporation (DDD) last month.
I continue to hold Illumina (ILMN), the preeminent company in gene sequencing equipment in my opinion. They're solid and all signs point towards continued growth in this area.
I also have kept my position in Neuralstem (CUR), which is a company working with stem cell treatments for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's Disease) and down the road perhaps spinal chord injuries.
I've liquidated all my holdings in marijuana stocks. They're for the most part too thinly traded and it's too difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff. Somewhere down the line when more states legalize the recreational and medical use of marijuana, and solid stocks with solid earnings begin to become evident, I'd love to get back into the game.
I liquidated my positions in Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (ISRG). It's an interesting company which has the potential to revolutionize surgery through the use of robotics, but for now sales of new machines are down, so that's been reflected in the stock's price.
I had hoped to get in on what I thought might be a resurgence of the stocks price, but when the market started to go south on this one I jumped ship.
I recently bought Inovio Pharmaceuticals (INO). It's a biopharmaceutical company that holds promising candidates in its pipeline for the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases.
It is also carrying out research into Intramuscular Electroporation Delivery Devices, which is a means of delivering DNA based vaccines. I don't have the room to go into the details (for those interested, here is a link to an excellent write-up in Seeking Alpha). I have now way of knowing this for sure, but this company has the potential to revolutionize medicine as we know it and I'm proud to be a shareholder in it.
I discovered another company called FireEye (FEYE), a cyber-security firm. The company recently acquired Mandiant, for a very good price in my opinion, and earned a lot of respect by "directly implicating China in cyber espionage to gain economic advantage." For those interested in going into this in greater detail, here's an excellent post on the company.
Tekmira Pharmaceuticals (TKMR): I got into this stock for the reasons stated in this Seeking Alpha writeup:
For those interested in looking into the pros and cons of this particular equity, I invite you to check out the entire article here.
DISCLAIMER: The investments discussed are held in client accounts as of February 28, 2013. These investments may or may not be currently held in client accounts. Investments in securities of small-cap and growth companies may be especially volatile. The reader should not assume that any investments identified were or will be profitable or that any investment recommendations or investment decisions we make in the future will be profitable. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
The post Up in smoke: Why I sold my marijuana stocks appeared first on Smarter InvestingCovestor Ltd. is a registered investment advisor. Covestor licenses investment strategies from its Model Managers to establish investment models. The commentary here is provided as general and impersonal information and should not be construed as recommendations or advice. Information from Model Managers and third-party sources deemed to be reliable but not guaranteed. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Transaction histories for Covestor models available upon request. Additional important disclosures available at http://site.covestor.com/help/disclosures.


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Come visit: South Korea's leader invited to North Korea
PYEONGCHANG, South Korea – A rare invitation to Pyongyang for South Korea's president marked Day Two of the North Korean Kim dynasty's southern road tour Saturday, part of an accelerating diplomatic thaw that included some Korean liquor over lunch and the shared joy of watching a "unified" Korea team play hockey at the Olympics.
Nothing has been settled on any trip north by South Korean President Moon Jae-in. But the verbal message to come at a "convenient time" from dictator Kim Jong Un, delivered by his visiting younger sister, Kim Yo Jong, is part of a sudden rush of improving feelings between the rivals during the Pyeongchang Olympics. The result: a heady, sometimes surreal, state of affairs in a South Korea that has seen far more threat than charm out of the North.
Still, it wouldn't be South Korea if people weren't asking the perennial question when it comes to North Korea changing gears and showering its rival with apparent affection: What's in it for Pyongyang?
Past "charm offensives" have been interpreted as North Korea trying to recoup from crippling sanctions on their nuclear program, or trying to drive a wedge between Seoul and its U.S. ally.
A massive military parade in Pyongyang on the eve of the just-opened Pyeongchang Games has been used as Exhibit A by skeptics. In it, Kim Jong Un highlighted several huge intercontinental ballistic missiles, which were successfully flight tested three times last year and could reach deep into the U.S. mainland when perfected.
Even so, there's also cautious optimism, or curiosity at least. If peace isn't imminent, a summit in Pyongyang between Moon and Kim Jong Un seems preferable to recent months' threats.
Moon told Kim Yo Jong that the North and South should continue to build conditions for a summit, Moon spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said. The U.S. and the North should quickly resume dialogue, he said.
The lunch Saturday at Seoul's presidential mansion between Moon and Kim Yo Jong was the most significant diplomatic encounter between the rivals in years. The night before, Kim and other North Korean delegates attended the opening ceremony of the Olympics, watching a "unified" Korean team march under a banner showing an undivided Korean Peninsula.
In a surreal mixture of dignitaries, the Olympic Stadium's VIP box included Kim Yo Jong and North Korea's nominal head of state, Kim Yong Nam, sitting above and behind U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and fellow hard-liner Shinzo Abe, Japan's prime minister. Pence and the Kims seemed to go out of their way not to acknowledge each other.
That was not the case with Moon – either at the games, when he enthusiastically reached up to shake Kim Yo Jong's hand, or at the lunch the next day. South Korean television showed its smiling president entering a reception room Saturday and shaking hands with the North Koreans.
The opening part of the talks was mostly about the weather: Pyeongchang was colder than Seoul, it was agreed.
"You went through a lot of trouble braving the cold until late" last night, Moon told the North Koreans, referring to their attendance at the frigid opening ceremonies.
At the luncheon, Moon proposed a toast, calling for peace and "mutual prosperity" for the two Koreas. He then recalled his past visit to the North's Diamond Mountain resort, where he and his mother met his North Korean aunt during a temporary reunion of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.
He also talked about visiting the North Korean border town of Kaesong, where the countries operated a joint factory park that had been a symbol of rapprochement before South Korea shut it down in 2016, after North Korea's fourth nuclear test.
"But I haven't been to Pyongyang," Moon said, according to comments provided by his office.
Kim Yo Jong said she hopes to see Moon in Pyongyang soon so that he and her brother could "exchange views over many issues," which she said would make "North-South relations develop like yesterday was a long time ago."
"We hope that President (Moon) could leave a legacy that would last over generations by leading the way in opening a new era of unification," she said.
After sitting at a table, Kim Yo Jong placed a blue document folder in front of her. She later gave that folder to Moon, and Moon's office said it was a personal letter from her brother. Officials didn't reveal what was written in it.
After meeting with Moon, the North Korean delegates boarded a bullet train to Gangneung, a coastal city hosting some Olympic events. Later Saturday night, they all joined the chief of the International Olympic Committee to watch the debut of the inter-Korean team in the women's ice hockey tournament. The Koreans were crushed by Switzerland, 8-0.
Pence's office didn't directly address Kim's invitation to Moon. "The vice president is grateful that President Moon reaffirmed his strong commitment to the global maximum pressure campaign and for his support for continued sanctions," Pence spokeswoman Alyssa Farah said when asked about the developments.
But Pence said that Moon shared "a bit" about his meeting with the North Koreans, and that he "appreciated him sharing his perspective on that."
"I leave here very confident that we are going to continue to do the things we've known have to be done to continue to pressure North Korea to abandon their nuclear ambitions," Pence said.
Moon is eager to use Kim Yo Jong's presence at the games to restore regular communication with North Korea and eventually pull it into nuclear talks. Many in Seoul, however, while interested in the warming high-level contacts, are also tempering expectations for a real breakthrough.
There's worry, too, that the proposed summit Pyongyang may come with preconditions – a North Korean specialty. A big one could be a demand to cease the U.S.-South Korean war games that North Korea claims are preparation for invasion.
But Moon, a liberal who has always wanted to engage the North, will also have to convince a good portion of his own people who are deeply wary about North Korean intentions.
Throw in there the accusations that South Korea has had to arrange huge payouts for past meetings, and that these earlier encounters, while producing indelible images, have done little to slow North Korea's pursuit of nuclear weapons.
Even if there are more meetings between the rivals after the Games, accomplishing something is another matter. South Korea wants a northern neighbor without nukes; North Korea vows to keep its weapons until the United States discards its "hostile" policies against the country.
Hours before Friday's opening ceremony in Pyeongchang, Japan's Abe warned Moon not to fall for North Korea's "smile diplomacy" during the Olympics, according to Moon's office. Pence carried a similar message.
They seem to have gone unheeded.
"Kim Jong Un is clearly serious about reviving talks with the South to improve relations," said Koh Yu-hwan, a North Korea expert at Seoul's Dongguk University and a security adviser to Moon.
"It seems clear," he said, "that the countries have entered a phase of restoring a regular level of contact."


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About Butha War (of Bruthaz Grimm)
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30–45 pounds. 4–5 ft. long (including tail).
Signs of their presence:
Coyotes run with their tails down, while wolves and dogs hold their tails straight out. The tails of domestic dogs often curl; coyotes have straight tails, with a black tip.
Sounds: May yip, yelp, howl, growl, bark, or woof. Family units (the adult pair and their pups of that year) often yip-howl when they reunite.
Tracks: More compact, linear, and forward-directed than the dogs' often splayed, sloppy-looking track.
Scats: are twisted, often containing hair or berries. Often found on rocks, logs, or at trail intersections. Their scat has a mild, musky odor, unlike that of the domestic dog.
Large carcasses: Coyotes tend to eat the organs first. They'll pick bones clean, unlike dogs. Dogs start at the rear of a larger carcass and eat their way towards the head.
Opportunist. About 80% of their diet consists of small rodents and rabbits. Coyotes will also eat insects (especially grasshoppers); fruits (berries, watermelon); fish and crayfish; frogs; snakes; bird eggs; larger mammals, such as raccoons, opossums, muskrats, and deer; garbage; carrion; dog or cat food; bird seed, and even doughnuts. They can kill housecats and dogs. Some individual coyotes will kill livestock, especially chicken, ducks, and lambs.
Typical activity patterns:
Social style: Most often, will see mated pairs (usually, life-long mates) but coyotes may live in family groups or alone, and may switch from one lifestyle to the other. Sometimes, "teenaged" coyotes form a loose group, often much larger than the family group, perhaps as with many as 15 individuals. Such groups may behave more aggressively towards people and dogs. The sub-adult group is probably just a temporary arrangement.
Daily activity: They're usually nocturnal, especially during hot weather. Coyotes may be active throughout the day when they're rearing their pups, and in areas where they're left alone by people. In suburban areas, coyotes may alter their activity patterns, especially if there are daytime food sources available, such as dog food that's left outdoors.
Hibernator? No.
Migrates? No.
Where found:
In Ohio, coyotes can be found in many different types of habitats as they are capable of adapting to many areas.
Coyotes prefer forested areas, shrubby fields, and marshy areas but are highly adaptable and will live in areas with a lot of people. They can be found in parks, beach fronts, suburban areas, and office parks
Territory and home range:
Home ranges covers 5–25 square miles. Coyotes will scent-mark their territory. Home ranges may overlap with other coyote groups, especially when they're not raising their pups.
Breeding habits:
Pair bonding style: Usually monogamous. Coyotes are thought to mate for life. Both parents cooperate in rearing the young, sometimes with the help of an older pup. Sometimes, a male may mate with several females and they may share the den, raising more than one litter there.
Dens: Coyotes seek sheltered areas for rest or protection from severe weather, but use dens to raise their young. Coyotes commonly move their pups from one den to another. Most often, coyotes will renovate a burrow that was built and then abandoned by another animal, such as a woodchuck, but they can dig their own dens. Their dens are often found on rocky ledges, or steep or brush-covered slopes. In urban areas, they may den in storm drains, under sheds, or in holes in parks, golf courses, and vacant lots. Coyotes may reuse dens from year to year.
Breeding dates: February. Females are only receptive for a few days. Gestation takes about nine weeks.
Litter size: 5–7. The better the food supply, the larger the litter.
Birthing period: late April.
Weaning dates: Pups begin exploring when they're three weeks old and are usually weaned by six weeks old.
Amount of time young remain with parents beyond weaning date: Pups are usually driven out of their parents' territory between September and March.
Common nuisance situations:
Time of year: Peaks in late winter (Feb.–March) when the coyotes are establishing their territories, then again in early spring and summer, when they need more food to raise their pups. During the winter peak, coyotes aggressively defend the area around their den site. This is when they often come into conflict with dogs (March–April), who they view as a threat to their pups. This is especially true if the coyotes are trying to move into the dog's turf (a yard).
In the early spring and summer, coyotes seek easy prey to keep up with the food demands of their pups. "Easy prey" may include cats and dogs in suburban areas, and young livestock (lambs, chicks) in rural areas. There may also be complaints during the fall, as young coyotes try to establish their own territories, because that can be a noisy process. But they're fussing among themselves and tend not to wrangle with dogs then.
What are they doing?
Their yipping and howling may disturb some people.
Their mere presence may frighten some people. Many people aren't used to seeing coyotes and may fear them.
They can kill housecats or small dogs, particularly unsupervised pets. Very small dogs and cats are seen as easy prey. Free-roaming pets should be brought inside to keep them safe from cars, pesticides, as well as predators.
Large and medium-sized dogs (over 35 pounds) are rarely physically threatened, because the coyote recognizes that it's outmatched. They'll usually work out the territorial dispute (loudly) without either being hurt. Small dogs are at risk. The coyote expects to be dominant and will discipline the dog until it offers the correct submissive behavior. If the dog doesn't submit easily, it could be badly injured or killed. Some coyotes kill livestock, many times getting into the poultry house or killing calves
They'll eat some vegetables and fruits, especially melons.
Coyotes (and foxes) will chew holes in irrigation pipes in fields and orchards.
Nationwide, a few people have been attacked. Most coyotes don't bother people. Some coyotes become bold and aggressive. If you see individuals showing these behaviors, take action. The potential does exist for coyote attacks in Ohio. People and coyotes can usually coexist if the coyotes maintain their natural fear of people (more on this later).
They may travel along an airport's runways, causing delays and hazards to aviation.
Coyotes can carry many diseases which can be harmful to people, pets, and livestock. These diseases include distemper, hepatitis, parvo virus, rabies, mange, and tularemia.
Legal status in Ohio:
Unprotected. Coyotes are unprotected in the state of Ohio and can be hunted year-round with legal means.
A valid hunting license or trapping license is required.
Best practices
Remove artificial food sources (garbage, compost, pet food, pets):
If anyone is feeding the coyotes, persuade them to stop.
"Coyote-proof" garbage cans or dumpsters with a tight-fitting lid. Secure garbage can with heavy-duty straps or bungee cords, or attach it to a post, or keep it out of reach in the garage (close garage doors at night) or place the can in a covered and secure bin.
Enclose compost piles in a framed box using hardware cloth; in a sturdy container, such as a 55-gallon drum; in a commercial composter.
Feed pets indoors. Any food left outdoors should be removed at night. Bring pet food dishes inside, too.
Clean up decaying fruit that is left under any fruit trees in the yard.
Keep the area around bird-feeders clean, because coyotes will eat spilled seed. They'll also eat animals that are attracted to the bird feeder, such as birds, mice, and squirrels, so in some cases, you may want to remove the feeder.
Do not allow pets to roam freely.
Keep an eye on pets while they are out at night
Do not leave pets outside overnight
If pets are in a kennel overnight, make sure the kennel is secure
Protect children and pets and keep coyotes out of yards:
Keep a close eye on children playing near the woods
If you have a bigger dog, allow it to be outside with young kids to act as a guard dog
Build a fence around your yard in which coyotes cannot crawl under
Some coyotes in suburbia have lost their fear of people. A coyote who does not fear people should be considered dangerous. The foods they find in residential areas (garbage, pet food, pets) are full of human odors, so these coyotes quickly learn to associate food with people. That's bad. Many people become frightened when they see coyotes, and run into their homes. That's even worse. To a coyote, that person has just behaved like prey (running triggers their attack response). In short, food smells like people and people behave like prey. Add to the mix people intentionally feeding coyotes, and the potential for a coyote attack becomes very real.
Certain changes in coyote behavior seem to indicate a growing risk that coyotes will become aggressive toward people (based on studies of coyote-human conflicts in California). The signs are shown in the order they usually happen.
During the night, coyotes kill more pets than they did before
During the night, coyotes are seen on streets and in yards more often than before
Coyotes are now seen in those areas during the day, especially early morning and late afternoon
During the day, coyotes chase or kill pets (previously, only a night-time activity)
During the day, coyotes kill pets that are on leash (previously, they only took free-roaming pets), or chase joggers and bikers
At midday, coyotes are seen near children's play areas
Coyotes are generally nocturnal, so increasing daytime activity is often a sign that those animals have become used to people. Such boldness should be taken seriously. The California study suggests that if the situation is addressed before pet attacks are common, further problems can probably be avoided.
What can you do?
Act tough. Be very aggressive. Yell, make loud noises, wave your arms, spray the coyote with water from a hose, and throw sticks or stones near the coyote.
Teach children that coyotes are not dogs and they are not pets. Watch coyotes from a distance.
Small children are most vulnerable, so don't leave kids in the yard unattended.
Don't let pets roam freely. And don't feed them outdoors!
Keep the yard clean and well-mowed to remove cover for the coyotes (trim shrubs at ground level). Remove brush and junk piles that attract rabbits and other prey that might entice coyotes into the yard.
Hunting and trapping helps to keep coyotes from losing their fear of people.
Fences will help a great deal, but coyotes can climb over, burrow under, or squeeze through fences. So, make sure the fences are constructed correctly and are kept well-maintained.
Construct net wire fences (using 4″ mesh) that are 5 1/2 ft. high. To prevent coyotes from digging under the fence, either add barbed wire at ground level or bury the fence 6″ deep and bend a foot-wide section outward into a "L" shape. To discourage coyotes from climbing over the fence, add an electric wire at the top or create an overhang of regular wires.
Electric fences: a fence of thirteen strands of high-tensile electric wire is proven to protect sheep from coyotes. Other designs using fewer wires may work in some areas.
Combination net wire and electric wire fence: If there's an existing net wire fence, add an electric strand that's placed 6–8″ above ground and 8–10″ outside the fence, using an offset bracket. If the coyotes are climbing over the fence, add a top wire that's also outside the fence.
Invisible fences may be an attractive solution for keeping pets within an area but they will not keep wildlife out. To protect pets from predators, switch to a traditional fence design.
Ask neighbors to follow these same steps.
Scare them away:
In some cases, you may be able to successfully scare off coyotes and solve the problem. This is most likely to work when you have access to the coyotes' den. It's reasonably easy to harass a coyote (or fox) enough to convince them to move their pups. These ideas haven't been well-studied, but we believe they're worth trying.
Act tough, as described previously.
Use slingshots, an air rifle, or a shotgun loaded with rubber buckshot to frighten a coyote that's further away (30 ft). You don't have to hit it to scare it off, but if you can, that will more effectively train the coyote to stay away (this refers to the use of the less lethal projectiles mentioned above).
Experiment with noisemakers, such as bangers and screamers.
One scare device, the Critter Gitter®, combines a siren and flashing lights. It's triggered by a motion detector. The device switches patterns, so it should be effective longer than a scare device that doesn't vary.
Keep lights on aoyotes from climbing over the fence, add an electric wire at the top or create an overhang of regular wires.
Electric fences: a fence of thirteen strands of high-tensile electric wire is proven to protect sheep from coyotes. Other designs using fewer wires may work in some areas.
Combination net wire and electric wire fence: If there's an existing net wire fence, add an electric strand that's placed 6–8″ above ground and 8–10″ outside the fence, using an offset bracket. If the coyotes are climbing over the fence, add a top wire that's also outside the fence.
Invisible fences may be an attractive solution for keeping pets within an area but they will not keep wildlife out. To protect pets from predators, switch to a traditional fence design.
Ask neighbors to follow these same steps.
Scare them away:
In some cases, you may be able to successfully scare off coyotes and solve the problem. This is most likely to work when you have access to the coyotes' den. It's reasonably easy to harass a coyote (or fox) enough to convince them to move their pups. These ideas haven't been well-studied, but we believe they're worth trying.
Act tough, as described previously.
Use slingshots, an air rifle, or a shotgun loaded with rubber buckshot to frighten a coyote that's further away (30 ft). You don't have to hit it to scare it off, but if you can, that will more effectively train the coyote to stay away (this refers to the use of the less lethal projectiles mentioned above).
Experiment with noisemakers, such as bangers and screamers.
One scare device, the Critter Gitter®, combines a siren and flashing lights. It's triggered by a motion detector. The device switches patterns, so it should be effective longer than a scare device that doesn't vary.
Keep lights on around the house at night or turn the lights on and yell when you hear them howl or yip
As with many scare tactics, some of the ideas above are labor-intensive. You might have to sit and wait a long time before the coyote shows up. (That may not concern some customers).
In some situations, such as when the customer really doesn't want the coyote killed, you may be able to train the coyote to become wary of the capture location. Some biologists believe that if a coyote is trapped and released, it will avoid the area in which it was caught. If the customer's property is large enough, and you don't think the coyote will move on to trouble a neighbor, you may want to trap it and release it on site. This is a riskier technique because if it doesn't work, your job has just become much harder. Consider this a last-resort technique.
Protect vulnerable livestock (poultry, sheep):
It is much easier to prevent a problem than it is to stop it once it starts.
Close and tightly fasten the doors to poultry houses.
Fence areas (see previous section). Another fencing option is to create a temporary pen for confining livestock at night. Portable electric fences can be installed quickly and easily. They're usually made of thin electric wires running through polyethylene twine or ribbon, called "polywire" or "polytape."
Herd livestock into pens and corrals at night, and during foggy or rainy days, when coyotes are more likely to hunt. Also, bring livestock into sheds or paddocks when they're ready to have young. If a particular pasture seems to be more enticing to predators, move the livestock into a less vulnerable area.
Keep pastures open. Clear away brush and weeds that provide cover for the coyotes. Remove brush and junk piles that attract rabbits and other prey that might entice coyotes into the pasture.
Sheep or goats kept near cattle are less likely to be preyed on by coyotes.
Keep herds and flocks healthy. Coyotes often prey on smaller, weaker lambs and calves.
If possible, change to a fall lambing and calving season. This doesn't coincide with the period when coyotes are raising their pups (late spring through September), which is when they are most likely to prey on young livestock.
Concentrate the lambing and calving period (using synchronized or group breeding) to reduce the amount of time that young, vulnerable animals are present in the herd or flock.
Well-trained guard dogs (usually of these breeds: Great Pyrenees, Komondor, Anatolian Shepherd, Akbash) and donkeys and llamas help prevent predation on sheep. This technique works even better if you keep the livestock and guard animals within proper fences.
Add lights to corrals. Strobe lights may work best to discourage coyotes.
Propane exploders and sirens may give temporary relief.
The USDA's Denver Wildlife Research Center developed a device for protecting sheep in fenced pastures. The "Electronic Guard" combines a strobe light and siren. (Or try the Critter Gitter®, described in the scare tactics section).
Parking a car or truck in a pasture may frighten away coyotes for a short time. If the coyotes are hunting during the day, put a dummy in the car.
Remove and properly dispose of livestock carcasses. Do not allow coyotes to develop a taste for livestock, live or dead! Carrion will attract coyotes to an area.
Trapping strategies:
The International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies has published Best Management Practices for Trapping Coyotes in the Eastern United States
It takes experience and skill to trap coyotes effectively. Don't wing it! Get help before you start. Coyotes easily become trap-shy, so a botched trapping attempt will leave the customer with a worse problem. There are excellent courses, videos, and books that explain how to trap coyotes.
Good trap locations: Look for coyote tracks and scat! Favorite spots include high hills; near isolated land features or isolated bales of hay (which they may use as scent posts); trail and stream crossings; fences; roads through pastures; deer trails; dry or shallow creek beds; near the border of fields, or tree groves, or pond dams; and near brush piles.
Set traps to one side of the trail, not directly in the trail. Look for a place where coyotes would naturally stop, such as near a gate, on a hilltop, or where the cover changes.
Place traps in an open, flat area, upwind of the path, to carry the scent of the bait (or lure, or both) across the coyote's normal trail. Bury the traps.
In the fall and winter, a dirt-hole set may work best. Flat sets and urine post sets are generally more effective during the summer.
The trap should be clean and not smell of people. Minimize human scent around the trap, too. Wear clean gloves and rubber footwear.
Traps should be dyed and waxed, or cold-dipped in a commercial product.
Coyote urine is a good lure for year-round use.
Use baits and lures that have mild scents during the warmer months, because a strong-smelling bait or lure might prompt the coyote to roll on the trap. The trap might fire without capturing the coyote, who might become trap-shy as a result.
Coyotes are powerful. Use strong, well-anchored, and well-balanced traps. But don't overpower your traps, because that could cause injuries.
Options for anchoring traps: two stakes, inserted crosswise, and disposable earth anchors with aircraft cable. "In-line" shock springs on the anchors will help prevent the coyote from lunging and pulling out of the trap.
Many trap manufacturers and suppliers now offer versions of traps with the modifications suggested below, or will modify their models upon request. Or you may choose to modify your own traps.
Nuisance coyotes should not be relocated, especially if the problem concerned a threat to human safety. They might cause a problem in the new location. Once caught, the coyote is extremely likely to be trap-shy.
Live traps that meet the BMP performance criteria:
Foothold traps with a jaw spread no greater than 5 3/8 inches or 6 inches with three swivels and 5/16 inches or greater of gripping surface.
Lethal techniques:
Shooting, with a shotgun (no lead shot larger than #2), or accurate rifle, depending on conditions. Centerfire rifles not larger than .229 caliber may be used. Rim fire rifles not larger than .22 caliber at any time.
Bait is allowed on private land but prohibited on state land.
Two approaches: 1. If the coyote's keeping to a regular schedule, sit and wait. (If it's not, you could wait and wait…) 2. Attract the coyote within shooting range using a predator call (howls or distress calls). Call when you're downwind of the coyote.
Howls, barks, and yips: you can try to mimic these sounds yourself, but they're harder to master than distress calls. There are recordings and commercial mouth-blown devices that will do the trick. Once you know what they mean, you may be able to use these sounds (perhaps in combination with a distress call) to locate the coyote or its den, or to draw a coyote into shooting range.
Distress calls (usually of prey, but some people use distress calls of competing predators or coyote pups): Most people use recordings or commercial mouth-blown devices. Coyotes respond because they hear an injured animal. They're coming in to eat it (coyotes are nearly always hungry).
Preferred killing methods:
Shooting, using a shotgun with BB-sized shot or larger, or a .22 caliber rifle, or a center fire rifle (target the head, if no rabies testing is required, or the heart/lungs)
Lethal injection of barbiturate, if possible
Acceptable killing methods:
Stunning and CO2 chamber (you can probably fit a coyote into a cooler-sized chamber. The animal must be restrained or unconscious.)
Stunning and shooting
Stunning and exsanguination (take care to reduce your exposure to body fluids)
Control strategies that don't work particularly well, or aren't legal in Ohio:
Bells placed on sheep, and radios blaring in pastures, don't work that well.
Many repellents have been tested to keep coyotes from preying on sheep and cattle, but none have worked well. Coyotes rely on visual cues when hunting. Taste and smell are not as important, so even when the repellent offended the coyotes, it didn't keep them from killing the animals—just from eating what they'd killed.
Train the coyotes to avoid eating sheep by offering a bad-tasting bait that would sicken, but not kill, the coyote. The theory was that coyotes are territorial, so if you could train "your" coyote that livestock taste bad, it wouldn't kill any more livestock and would also keep other coyotes away. Great idea, inconclusive results.
For information on legal pesticides click the following link, https://agri.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/oda/divisions/plant-health/pesticides/pesticide-regulation
There are two poisons that you may read about, M-44®, and Compound 1080, they are legal in some states, primarily out west.
Interesting Facts and Myths
Coyotes are often mistaken for "coydogs." A cross between a coyote and dog is possible but highly unlikely because of differences in their breeding habits. There are enough coyotes; they can easily find mates.
A coyote that's active during the day is not necessarily rabid. Most likely, it's a healthy animal that's feeding more often than usual, because of the demands of their young.


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Across a wide belt that stretches halfway around the globe, the world's estimated 1.6 billion Muslims will mark the beginning of Ramadan this weekend. The holy season is marred by unprecedented turmoil, violence and sectarian hatreds that threaten to rip apart the Middle East, the epicenter of Islam.
Syria is bleeding. Militants have taken over large parts of Iraq. Lebanon, Libya, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Egypt are all battling Islamic extremists. Millions of war refugees are scattered across the landscape.
Although the bloodshed has eroded much of the Ramadan joy, millions of Shiite and Sunni Muslims will fast for grueling hours, both hoping for God's acceptance.
Related stories:
- Palestinian prisoners halt hunger strike for Ramadan fast
- Asma Assad cooks for Ramadan
- Israeli ambassador hosts Ramadan dinner
Some facts about Ramadan
What is Ramadan?
A Muslim holy month of fasting during which Muslims abstain from food, drink and other pleasures from sunrise to sunset. Ramadan is the time Muslims believe God started to reveal the Quran to the Prophet Muhammad. For believers, Ramadan is meant to be a time of reflection and worship, remembering the hardships of others and being charitable.
When does Ramadan begin and end?
Islam is based on a lunar calendar, so the start of Ramadan on the Gregorian calendar varies each year. Once the new crescent moon has been sighted, observance begins. The new moon at the end of the month signals Eid al-Fitr, a three-day festival marking the end of fasting. The majority of Shiites tend to mark Ramadan a day later than Sunnis, although this Ramadan is an exception and a rare event where Shiite and Sunnis will mark Ramadan together — at least in most places.
Why Fast?
Fasting is one of the five basic tenets, or pillars, of Islam. Muslims give multiple other reasons: to teach empathy with the poor, learn self-control and show devotion to God. Islam exempts the elderly, young children, pregnant women and those who are ill or travelling from fasting. In some countries like Saudi Arabia and the Emirates, non-Muslims are banned from eating, drinking, or smoking in public during Ramadan. Other countries are more flexible.
It may be a time for introspection but Ramadan can also be a time of indulgence. Much like Christmas or Thanksgiving in the Western world, Ramadan is a time for families and friends to gather for elaborate, fast-breaking daily meals known as iftars. There's a tendency to overeat and go wild on sweets. Prices go up. So-called Ramadan tents are popular venues, providing a place for people to meet after sunset to eat and smoke water pipes until the early morning hours.
Why is there more violence?
Ramadan is a time of heightened religious fervor and militants typically step up their attacks during the month. Sunni extremists believe that attacks, especially suicide missions, during Ramadan are more blessed and rewarded by God.
Surviving Ramadan tradition
Dates with names: In Egypt, dates — typically eaten first to break the fast — are named after leaders, politicians or celebrities. From ousted dictator Hosni Mubarak to Islamist President Mohammad Morsi to the current president, Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, Egyptian Ramadan dates have kept in line with the county's political oscillations.
Mehebes: Despite the perpetual turmoil of Iraq, one surviving tradition is mehebes, a popular game played during Ramadan where players hope to win sweets by guessing who among their opposing team is hiding a ring in their hands.
Pheni and Khajla: Discs of thin, deep-fried vermicelli and crispy, puffed up discs of flaky pastry soaked with milk and eaten for the pre-dawn meal, or Suhur, in Pakistan. Heaps of both items can be found at sweets shops and bakeries during the entire month. In Lebanon, Jordan and Palestinian territories, the equivalent is Qatayef and Kunafa.
Cannons: Before television and radio, it was the only way to alert people it was time to break the fast. A few places, such as Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, have kept up the tradition. Every day at sunset during the holy month, cannon shots are fired from 12 locations at iftar time.
Lanterns: Traditional colored lanterns, also known as Fanoos, are an integral part of Ramadan in Egypt, where they are hung at the entrance of each building, supermarket and shop. The tradition is believed to date back to the Fatimid period and has spread to other countries in the Arab world.
Musaharati: A person entrusted with waking people up for a pre-dawn meal and prayers ahead of the day's fast by banging on drums. While the centuries-old tradition is fading away — phone alarms replacing the drumming — the custom is still alive in some parts of Beirut, Cairo and Gaza.
The typical drum cry goes:
"Oh, sleeping one, wake up and pray for God — Ramadan Kareem."


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I was fortunate enough to receive ALL of patterns from Cluck Cluck Sew. Did I mention ALL of them!!!! There are so many I thought I would share in hopes that someone will make one of these lovely quilts to donate next year to a cause close to their heart.
Many thanks to Allison for her generous gift to such a worthy cause!!!!!!!
One giveaway winner will win all three of these awesome patterns!!!!
( All photos are from Cluck Cluck Sew) | ||
To enter the giveaway: 2. You have a second chance by leaving a comment if you are a follower ( love you guys!!!!) or a new follower ( I have lots of love to give!!!!) The giveaway will be closed on Wed November 9th and a winner will be chosen on Thursday November 10th I will be choosing the winner using Random.org Good Luck!!!!!! |


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The second edition of Cambridge Humanities and Social Sciences for Queensland supports teachers in delivering engaging content for the new Australian Curriculum v9.0.
Learn more at cambridge.edu.au/qldhass2ed
Cambridge Humanities and Social Sciences for Western Australia has been written for the Western Australian Curriculum by passionate local teachers who have ensured the requisite depth of content and range of activities are provided to meet the needs of WA classrooms.
Preview our interactive resources in this short video demonstration:
Developing the concepts and skills for today's students to investigate and engage with the shaping of the modern world.
Inspired by the rationale of the Victorian Curriculum, this engaging and accessible new series provides a framework for students to explore the shaping of the modern world and the various challenges faced by humanity today.
View a short demonstration of the digital resources:
Written by a trusted author team of leading educators of economics, business, civics and citizenship, Cambridge Money, Markets and Citizenship for the Victorian Curriculum 9 & 10 explores the contemporary issues that surround the economic and political systems that shape Australia today.
Students are equipped with the concepts, knowledge and skills they need to be global active citizens and consumers through a wide range of activities, and a new level of digital support that brings the topics to life and provides teachers with valuable task-management, testing and reporting tools.
Supporting teachers in delivering engaging, local content to guide and encourage their Year 7 to 10 students as they explore the shaping of the modern world and the various challenges faced by humanity today.
Preview our interactive resources in this short video demonstration:
Watch our webinar on inquiry and cognition in the history classroom for years 7-10:


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A different way to view probability densities
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The standard, textbook way to represent a density function looks like this:
Perhaps you have seen this before? (Plot created in R, all source code from this post is included at the end). Not only will you find this plot in statistics books, you'll also see it in medical texts, sociology, and even economics books. It gives you a clear view of how likely an observation is to fall in a particular range of . So what's the problem?
The problem is that what usually concerns us isn't probability in isolation. What matters is the impact that observations have on some other metric of importance, like the total or average. The key thing we want to know about a distribution is: What range of observations will contribute the most to our expected value, and in what way? We want a measure of influence.
Here's the plot of the Cauchy density:
From this view, it doesn't look all that different from the Normal. Sure it's a little more narrow, with "fatter tails", but no radical difference, right? Of course, the Cauchy is radically different from the normal distribution. Those slightly fatter tails give very little visual indication that the Cauchy is so extreme-valued that it has no expected value. Integrating to find the exception gives you infinity in both directions. If your distribution is like this, you've got problems and your plot should tell you that right away.
Here's another way to visualize these two probability distributions:
Go ahead and click on the image above to see the full view. I'll wait for you…
See? By plotting the density multiplied by the observation value on the y-axis, you get a very clear view of how the different ranges of the function effect the expectation. Looking at these, it should be obvious that the Cauchy is an entirely different beast. In the normal distribution, extreme values are so rare as to be irrelevant. This is why researchers like to find ways to treat their sample as normally distributed: a small sample gives enough information to tell the whole story. But if your life (or livelihood) depends on a sum or total amount, you're probably best off plotting your (empirical) density in the way shown above.
Another bit of insight from this view is that the greatest contribution to the expectation comes at 1 and -1, which in the case of the Normal isn't the mean, but rather the second central moment (plus or minus). That's not a coincidence, but it's also not always the case, as we shall see. But first, what do things look like when a distribution gets completely out of hand?
The Student's t distribution, on 1 Degree of Freedom , is identical to the Cauchy. But why stop at a single DF? You can go all the way down to the smallest (positive) fraction.
The closer you get to zero, the flatter the curve gets. Can we ever flatten it out completely? Not for a continuous distribution with support over an infinite range. Why not? Because in order for the slope of to continue to flatline it indefinitely, the density function would have to be some multiple of , and of course the area under this function diverges as we go to infinity, and densities are supposed to integrate to 1, not infinity, right?
What would the plot look like for a continuous function that extends to infinity in just one direction? Here's the regular Exponential(1) density function plot:
Now look at the plot showing contribution to expectation:
Were you guessing it would peak at 1? Again, the expectation plot provides insight into which ranges of the distribution will have the greatest impact on our aggregate values.
Before I go look at an a discrete distribution, try to picture what the expectation curve would look like for the standard distribution. Did you picture a diagonal line?
Can we flatten things out completely with an infinitely-supported discrete distribution? Perhaps you've heard of the St. Petersburg Paradox. It's a gambling game that works like this: you flip a coin until tails comes up. If you see one head before a tails, you get $1. For 2 heads you get $2, for 3 heads $4, and so on. The payoff doubles each time, and the chances of reaching the next payoff are halved. The paradox is that even though the vast majority of your winnings will be quite modest, your expectation is infinite. The regular view of the probability mass function for provides almost no insight:
But take a look at the expectation plot:
Flat as a Nebraska wheat field. You can tell right away that something unusual is happening here.
I could go on with more examples, but hopefully you are beginning to see the value in this type of plot. Here is the code, feel free to experiment with other distributions as well.
# Useful way to make dots look like a line x = seq(-5,5,length=1500) # You've seen this before. Our good friend the Normal plot(x,dnorm(x),pch=20,col="blue", main="Standard Normal density function") # Cauchy looks a little different, but it's not obvious how different it is plot(x,dcauchy(x),pch=20,col="blue", main="Cauchy density function") # New way of plotting the same plot(x,dnorm(x)*x,pch=20,col="blue", main="Normal density: contribution to expectation") abline(h=0,lty="dashed",col="gray") plot(x,dcauchy(x)*x,pch=20,col="blue", main="Cauchy density: contribution to expectation") abline(h=0,lty="dashed",col="gray") # Extreme student-t action: plot(x,dt(x,0.001)*x,pch=20,col="blue", main="Student's t on 0.001 d.f. contribution to expectation") abline(h=0,lty="dashed",col="gray") # The Exponential x = seq(0,10,length=1500) plot(x,dexp(x,1),pch=20,col="blue", main="Standard Exponential density function") # The expectation view: plot(x,dexp(x,1)*x,pch=20,col="blue", main="Exponential mass contribution to expectation") # What do we see with the St. Petersburg Paradox x = 2^(0:30) dStPete <- function(x) { return (1/(2*x)) } # Note the log plot(x,dStPete(x),pch=20,col="blue", main="St. Petersburg mass function", log="x", xlab="Payoff", ylab="Probability",ylim=c(0,.5)) # Now we see the light plot(x,dStPete(x)*x,pch=20,col="blue", main="St. Petersburg mass fcn: contribution to expectation", xlab="Payoff", log="x", ylab="Payoff times probability",ylim=c(0,.5)) abline(h=0,lty="dashed",col="gray")
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Wild Berry Incense Sticks Single- Apple Crisp
Wild Berry Incense is pulled and bagged together per order. We do not individually bag different incense cones or stick fragrances by fragrance type. If you are wanting only one fragrance per bag, please be sure to order only one fragrance per order or a minimum of 20 of the same fragrance type. We only individually bag incense by incense fragrance if 20 or more of the same fragrance type are ordered within the same order. All random sets of purchased incense (see our sets of 20, 100, etc.) are bagged together.


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By Norman R. Augustine
The role of research universities in underpinning our nation's standard of living is of pivotal importance. However, too often it is taken for granted that our universities will more or less automatically continue to generate the breakthroughs that have fueled our economy for many years. Dan Goldin told me when he was administrator of NASA that he had received a complaint from a disgruntled citizen who inquired, "Why do we need meteorological satellites? We have the weather channel."
It was my privilege during the late 1990s to serve as a member of the Hart-Rudman Commission on National Security. Our final report stated, in part, that " . . . the US government seriously under-funded basic science research in recent years . . . If we do not invest heavily and wisely in rebuilding [research and education], America will be incapable of maintaining its global position long into the 20th century."
The other primary finding stated that a major direct attack against American citizens on American soil with heretofore unimagined casualties was likely, and that a National Homeland Security Agency should be established with Cabinet status to address that threat. Our prediction proved to be all too accurate. Unfortunately, the tragedy of 9/11 occurred before any of our Commission's principal recommendations were implemented. But it is not too late to address the health of our basic scientific research enterprise, which is principally harbored in the nation's universities.
I was responsible for a firm whose future existence was heavily dependent upon the competitive margin that could be generated by the 62,000 engineers and scientists with whom I worked. And I was well aware of studies that had shown that over 50% of the jobs created in America during the last half century could be directly attributed to investments in science and technology. Most of our own company's sales were derived from products that did not even exist a few years earlier. In the case of another firm, Intel, nearly 90% of all the products they sell in any given year did not exist a year earlier. Even a consumer products firm such as Procter and Gamble has been described by its former CEO as fundamentally an R&D enterprise.
I was deeply troubled that many of the corporate boards on which I served were increasingly being called upon to approve proposals to relocate factories outside the US. It was almost certainly in the best interest of our shareholders, and, ultimately, of our remaining employees, to conduct more and more of our manufacturing operations in such places as Asia, India and Mexico. I recently visited a factory in Vietnam where the wrap-rate was about twenty-five cents per hour, far less than most American firms pay simply for medical insurance for their employees.
The trend to relocate abroad did not stop with factories. I soon learned that we could hire eleven engineers in India for the cost of one in the US. We could hire even more in Russia–and these too were highly-qualified engineers, many educated in the US. Soon we were being asked to approve moving our design teams and software production abroad. More recently, our research laboratories have joined the exodus.
Today, America's companies find themselves in a marketplace without borders–or, at the very least, with borders that are extremely permeable. And it is quite clear that we are unable to compete in this global marketplace on the basis of favorable domestic labor costs. Only one acceptable choice remains: to be among the world's foremost innovators. The underpinning of innovation is research, particularly in science and technology, which is increasingly becoming the relatively exclusive province of our nation's universities. This is where the breakthroughs, the "Big Bangs" that have profound impacts, are produced. The consequences of neglect, although severe, are often not suffered for a number of years. Further, a trend of neglect is not easily reversed–as some great scholar once noted, you can't produce pigs by running the sausage machine backwards.
One might reasonably ask why, if in the last dozen years, inflation-adjusted research and development conducted in America has increased by two-thirds, one should be alarmed about the health of the nation's research enterprise. Furthermore, the industrial sector seems to have been picking up the slack in R&D growth. In fact, industry R&D spending surpassed government spending in 1980, and now comprises more than double the amount of funds that the government appropriates to this purpose.
However, almost all the increase in government research spending has been devoted to the biosciences. And while pursuing this laudable course, investment in the physical sciences, mathematics and engineering has been badly neglected. In the physical sciences, federal research spending has been roughly flat as measured in constant-purchasing power, while funding in mathematics and engineering has only slightly surpassed inflation. Correspondingly, the number of Bachelors degrees awarded by US universities in these fields since 1985 has dropped by 11%, 28% and 21%, respectively. Undergraduate students seem to be keenly aware of where the jobs are to be found.
While overall industry-funded R&D has increased markedly, these monies have largely been devoted to development activities as opposed to research. Even those funds which have been devoted to research are increasingly focused upon applied rather than basic research. Current indicators of this trend include the diminished status of such renowned institutions as Bell Labs or the closing several years ago of Martin Marietta's corporate research laboratory.
Several years ago, when I was with Martin Marietta, we concluded that it had an unusually rich set of opportunities that could be reaped by increased investment in applied research. We called a special meeting in New York of Wall Street analysts so our president could describe our exciting plans in detail. But upon completion of his presentation, the audience literally ran from the room and sold our stock.
The price of our stock plummeted the next day and continued to decline gradually for another 18 months as we persisted in our strategy. I particularly recall the remarks of one analyst who told us, "Everyone knows it takes 10 or 15 years for investments in research to pay off–but your shareholders, on average, only own your stock for a little over a year before they sell it. The benefits of your research, if there are any, may be of interest to the great-grandchildren of your shareholders–but today's shareholders shouldn't be asked to foot the bill for it. Our fund doesn't invest in companies with such short-sighted (emphasis added) management."
But if industry is to abdicate its responsibility to feed the front-end of the innovation machine, who then is to do so? A case can be made that the support of generic, broadly-applicable, high-payoff and often risky research is an appropriate province of our government. This has in fact been widely and beneficially recognized for many years and has resulted in the creation of such agencies as the NSF, NIH and DARPA and the DOE science program.
The problem resides in the inadequacy of resources being made available for research in the so-called "hard sciences". Flat federal funding of the physical sciences, in constant dollars, has taken place as we have become increasingly dependent on science and technology for jobs, healthcare, energy and national security. In effect, we have created a huge "inverted pyramid" of jobs, corporations and technology which to a large extent is supported, rather precariously, at its fulcrum by a program of university research.
The bottom line is that in the last two decades, the US share of global exports has fallen from 30% to 17%, while those of Asia, excluding Japan, grew from 7% to 27%. For the first time in memory, the US now has a negative trade balance for high-technology products–and the jobs associated therewith are fast becoming one of our major exports.
These were some of the considerations that prompted me to begin attempts to call increased attention to our nation's under-investment in university research. It became abundantly evident in my role as a relatively neutral party that, although I found America's academe broadly and highly respected for its scholarly excellence, its researchers were often resented by the very officials who have a say in the allocation of federal research funds. I also found a certain unspoken reluctance by some legislators to support institutions which they view as elitist; institutions whose tuition, even after scholarships, grows at a rate considerably exceeding the growth in income of the general populace–and which rejects the sons and daughters of the Washington cognoscenti at a rate which does not go unobserved. And, finally, I would gratuitously note that when scientists, as a group, take public positions on contentious subjects having at best marginal relationships to science, it rarely endears them to all members of the political establishment.
I further discovered that relationships within the nation's research community itself in many instances make last year's Los Angeles Lakers appear to be Miss Congeniality. On several occasions, after having made an impassioned plea for university research funding, I would learn that my footsteps had been followed by groups of scientists wherein the physicists argued that any new money should be spent on physics and certainly not on chemistry; but the physicists then argued among themselves whether new money should be spent on particle physics or astrophysics; and the experimentalists asserted that new funds should certainly not be wasted on theoreticians.
The result of this cacophony was that many members of Congress, perhaps understandably, tended to throw up their hands: If the experts can't agree on how money should be spent, and the members don't have the time, or perhaps even inclination, to learn the difference between a boson and a lepton, it is best that the money simply be spent on highways.
It is my belief that were industry and our universities to work more closely together in explaining the importance of fundamental research, a much broader acceptance of the notion might be realized. Similarly, an increase in industry funding of research performed at our universities would benefit both parties. A program of tax credits for companies that do so would provide additional incentives.
I recognize that it is difficult to obtain government support in today's challenging funding climate for pursuits that do not produce a rather clear, direct impact on the quality of life of the average citizen. My first suggestion is to adopt, wherever possible, pragmatic arguments when making the case for increasing the nation's spending on academic research. Relate such spending to the creation of jobs, the enhancement of health, the assurance of physical security, and so forth. I conclude this with a sense of sadness, because I believe that the search for knowledge has merit in its own right. If we cannot afford to study the origin of the dinosaur because it may not create jobs, not even for dinosaurs, does that also suggest that we should not take time to watch Shakespeare performed, listen to Beethoven's works, or cheer Roger Clemens' fastball? On the other hand, when this connectivity is convincingly demonstrated, the nation's policy makers appear to be willing, even eager, to invest.
My second suggestion is that some degree of internal consensus be established within the academic community as to priorities for allocating resources. At a minimum a "truce" is needed whereby the various interested partisans make their cases without attacking those of others.
Third, spokespersons need to be enlisted in the cause who are independent of our research universities and do not suffer the appearance of being self-serving. This accounts for the remarkable success groups of citizens concerned with various diseases have had in doubling the NIH budget in recent years.
Fourth, successes achieved from our government's investment in research need to be broadly publicized and publicly attributed to government support. Few people seem to recognize the important role physics, chemistry, engineering and mathematics play in underpinning health research; for example, the contribution of robotics, computers and mathematics in deciphering the human genome, or the role of mathematics and engineering in modern non-intrusive imaging techniques. Even fewer seem to be aware of studies such as the one that concluded that research conducted at MIT alone had in recent years generated over 4,000 companies and created over a million jobs.
Finally, I recommend communicating the old fashioned way: face-to-face contacts with individual members of Congress, the administration and the media. It is also important to visit the members in their home district, where they have more time to devote to longer-term issues. Including respected local citizens in these visits amplifies the impact of the message being conveyed.
The bad news is that our nation's investment in research in the physical sciences and engineering is only about one-tenth of one percent of the nation's GDP. But the good news is that major proportionate increases can therefore be achieved with relatively modest overall impact on the federal budget. For example, the federal research effort in engineering, math and the physical sciences could be doubled by increasing the gasoline tax by a dime per gallon. For perspective, the entire research budget in all these fields is less than the amount by which healthcare costs in America increase every two months. There is enormous leverage available for research to recover increased investment.
I would like to close with a poem attributed to Richard Hodgetts that, to my mind, captures the intense competitiveness of the global marketplace.
Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up.
It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed.
Every morning in Africa a lion wakes up.
It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve.
It doesn't matter whether you're a lion or a gazelle–when the sun comes up, you'd better be running.
Norman R. Augustine is the retired Chairman and CEO of the Lockheed Martin Corporation and former Under Secretary of the Army. This article is adapted from his April 19, 2005 lecture before the Association of American Universities.
The full text of the lecture can be found at http://www.aau.edu/resuniv/Augustine--04-19-05.pdf.
APS encourages the redistribution of the materials included in this newspaper provided that attribution to the source is noted and the materials are not truncated or changed.


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Proponent's argument in favor (Heritage Action, Feb. 26, 2014): H.R. 3865 comes in the wake of an attack on the Tea Party and other conservative organizations. The current IRS regulation is so broad and ill-defined that the IRS applies a "facts and circumstances" test to determine what constitutes "political activity" by an organization. This test can vary greatly depending on the subjective views of the particular IRS bureaucrat applying the test. IRS employees took advantage of this vague and subjective standard to unfairly delay granting tax-exempt status to Tea Party organizations and subject them to unreasonable scrutiny.
Text of sample IRS letter to Tea Party organizations:We need more information before we can complete our consideration of your application for exemption. Please provide the information requested on the enclosed Information Request by the response due date. Your response must be signed by an authorized person or officer whose name is listed on your application.
Also see the related House bill H.3865.


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Radar Tracking Using MATLAB Function Block
This example shows how to use an extended Kalman filter with the MATLAB® Function block in Simulink® to estimate an aircraft's position from radar measurements. The filter implementation is found in the MATLAB Function block, the contents of which are stored in the Simulink model itself.
At the end of the simulation, three figures display the following information: the actual trajectory compared to the estimated trajectory; the estimation residual for range; and the actual, measured, and estimated positions.
Related Topics
- Aerospace Blockset
- Create Aerospace Models (Aerospace Blockset)